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It’s sometimes called the second season, and often garners more attention than even other sports.
Why? A solid recruiting class can turn around a program and set it in motion for years to come. There are a host of examples of even one player making a splash that translates to a championship run.
The well-documented 2013 Ole Miss recruiting class is only a chapter in the long list of SEC recruiting tales. There’s also Cam Newton, Michael Oher and even last year when Brandon McIlwain was the more highly regarded quarterback in a South Carolina class that included Jake Bentley.
Alabama’s Nick Saban has the most seniority in the SEC, going on 11 years in Tuscaloosa, including four national championships. But this is the first full season for Ed Orgeron, who already has a history of several recruiting hauls from his Ole Miss tenure. And now with a season behind them and a track record to recruit from, Georgia’s Kirby Smart, South Carolina’s Will Muschamp and Missouri’s Barry Odom are in the midst of building their third recruiting class.
Here are the best recruits by star rating from the 247Sports Composite for each SEC coach:
ALABAMA COACH NICK SABAN
3-star: DT Terrence Cody (2008)
4-star: WR Amari Cooper (2012)
5-star: WR Julio Jones (2008, No. 3-ranked player overall)
ARKANSAS COACH BRET BIELEMA
3-star: LB Dre Greenlaw (2015)
4-star: RB Alex Collins (2013)
5-star: McTelvin Agim (2016, No. 18 overall is the only 5-star recruit)
AUBURN COACH GUS MALZAHN
3-star: RB Peyton Barber (2013)
4-star: RB Jovon Robinson (2013)
5-star: DE Carl Lawson (2013, No. 21 overall)
FLORIDA COACH JIM McELWAIN
3-star: WR Antonio Callaway (2015)
4-star: RB Jordan Scarlett (2015)
5-star: OT Martez Ivey (2015, No. 2 overall)
GEORGIA COACH KIRBY SMART
3-star: CB Ameer Speed (2017)
4-star: DT Julian Rochester (2016)
5-star: QB Jacob Eason (2016, No. 5 overall)
KENTUCKY COACH MARK STOOPS
3-star: S A.J. Stamps (2014)
4-star: RB Boom Williams (2014)
5-star: N/A
LSU COACH ED ORGERON
3-star: RB Dexter McCluster (2006, Ole Miss)
4-star: DE K’Lavon Chaisson (2017)
5-star: OL Michael Oher (2005, Ole Miss)
MISSISSIPPI STATE COACH DAN MULLEN
3-star: QB Dak Prescott (2011)
4-star: DT Fletcher Cox (2009)
5-star: DL Chris Jones (2013, No. 18 overall)
MISSOURI COACH BARRY ODOM
3-star: TE Brendan Scales (2016)
4-star: RB Natereace Strong (2016)
5-star: N/A
OLE MISS COACH HUGH FREEZE
3-star: DB Trae Elston (2012)
4-star: DT Isaac Gross (2012)
5-star: OT Laremy Tunsil (2013, No. 4 overall)
SOUTH CAROLINA COACH WILL MUSCHAMP
3-star: DE Keir Thomas (2016)
4-star: WR OrTre Smith (2017)
5-star: N/A
TENNESSEE COACH BUTCH JONES
3-star: CB Cam Sutton (2013)
4-star: QB Joshua Dobbs (2013)
5-star: DT Kahlil McKenzie (2015, No. 6 overall)
TEXAS A&M COACH KEVIN SUMLIN
3-star: WR Josh Reynolds (2014)
4-star: C Mike Matthews (2012)
5-star: DE Myles Garrett (2014, No. 2 overall)
VANDERBILT COACH DEREK MASON
3-star: DE Caleb Peart (2015)
4-star: DE Nifae Lealao (2014)
5-star: N/A
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.